Johnny gave a sigh of relief as the front door slammed shut. He watched from the window as the small family got into their car and pulled away, a feeling of peace settled over him. With the sounds of the car fading in the background he began to drift from room to room. In each room he was able to spot something that needed repaired or replaced. The walls in each room needed repainting from years of pictures staying in the small position, hardwood floors were also in need of repair in the dining room and the carpet in the living room needed replaced.
All of these things he could do on his own and he wanted to do them. He wanted to get the place back in shape and return it to the way it looked when he first bought it only he had a problem.
He was dead.
He’s been dead a long time now. To think he survived being drafted, going through boot camp and making it through the invasion of Pearl Harbor. Somehow living through numerous battles till the end of the war, only to have death take him on his return flight home.
Looking out the back door the memories of that day come back to him, the roaring engines of the plane and the Pacific Ocean flying by underneath.
He continued to look out the door watching a squirrel play on a tree branch. Running his hand through his hair he smiles as the memory of sitting on the plane wishing he had had the time to visit the barber, but he was in such a hurry to get home to his sweet Ashley that he jumped at the first available flight home.
He turned and started toward the stairs to the second story, slowly climbing, his mind back in that plane that faithful day.
He had been leaning against the side of the plane getting ready to doze off when a terrible noise started coming from one of the engines on the left wing; the smell of smoke started filling the cabin. He remembered thinking this can’t be happening, that this plane can not be getting ready to crash.
Things went from bad to worse as the airplane started shaking violently and the smoke became even thicker. Then suddenly everything went quiet; the terrible noise from the engine had stopped. He was getting ready to thank heaven above when it hit him; it’s to quiet. All the engines had stopped completely.
Everything started happening rapidly now. The pilot and co-pilot could be heard calling out for mayday over the radio. The plane began to pitch forward, picking up speed as gravity took over pulling the plane down toward the ocean below.
Every muscle inside him was clenched tight with fear and sweat coated his skin. There was nothing he could do to help them except pray, which he did with every fiber of his being for their survival.
The last thing he remembered was seeing an image of Ashley flashing before him. Her eyes were filled with so much love that for a brief moment it gave his heart joy, only to be over taken by sorrow of what he was going to leave behind.
Right before the plane hit the water he remembered reaching out to her with his hand and seeing her do the same. He swore he could feel their hands touch and as they did he cried out. “I’ll never leave you; I’ll be by your side always and forever. I love you Ashley.” Then everything went black.
He gave himself a shake to find he was in the main bedroom of the house. The sun had gone down and given way to twilight. He moved toward the window feeling weak and sad. The memories of his past and of what he lost zapped his energy. He could feel that dark place, that empty void between life and death calling him. No matter how hard he fought that pull he could never win and he hated that cause he never knew how long he would stay in that place. That dark void only let him return when his ghostly self had recharged.
He took one last look around the room, feeling that void closing in around him but this time he didn’t care, he welcomed it with open arms. Knowing that for at least a little while he would forget the life and love he lost.
Ashley gave a whoop of joy as she pulled into the drive of her new home. Finally a house to call her own instead of renting someone else’s.
She stepped from the car with a smile on her face, her eyes looking the house over. The place was just so cute and charming, how she got lucky enough to find it much less get the house she would never know.
She walked around to the trunk of her car and began to unload boxes to the lawn. With one large box in her arms she walked up the steps to the cozy front porch. After setting the box down she reached into her pocket for that golden key, unlocking the door and pushed it wide open.
She stepped inside with her one of the last few boxes of her belongings and set it in the living room floor. Doing a slow turn, her smile getting bigger by the second she said out loud. “I’m back. I’m finally back where I belong.”
She hesitated a second. “What the hell do I mean by that? I’ve never been here before.”
She searched her memory trying to find anytime that she may have been here before but came up with a blank. “I must be more tired then I thought.” She said out loud.
The house had now been hers officially for two week and in that time she had some repairs made, like walls painted and new carpet installed. There were still a few repairs left but nothing to keep her from moving in.
With all the furniture in place thanks to the strong backs of friends the only thing now was to unpack all the boxes. Thinking that music would makes things go faster she set up her stereo quickly and smiled brightly as the Big Band sounds of the 1940’s came in loud and clear.
Box after box of her things got quickly unloaded as she hummed along with the music of Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman. She wondered about her taste of music as she began to unload the huge collection of compact discs she had. You could find almost anything from her personal favorite of country, to the wide range of classic rock and oldies, to even a few opera singers. But Big Band found a place in her heart the first time she heard it as a child and she just couldn’t explain it.
After she finished with the unloading the last of the compact discs she went to the kitchen and made herself some lemonade and returned back to the living room, stretching out on the couch. The soothing melody of an old love song helped to relax her tired and aching muscles. She felt her eyes getting heavy and thought that she would take just a small nap to get her strength back and it wasn’t long before sleep claimed her.
He was still in that dark void and to tell the truth he didn’t really care how long he had been there either. Time always seem to move at a different pace here then what it did in the real world, but right now he felt something starting to happen to him unlike before. Something was tugging at his soul and he wondered if maybe he was finally heading for either heaven or hell after all these years of lingering in this no man’s land.
The first thing that came to him was sound. At first it was a soft buzzing noise but as the sound got louder he thought it sounded like music that was popular back when he was alive.
With his curiosity sparked he blinked and the next thing he knew he was back in the main bedroom, right where he was when he disappeared into that void, but things had changed while he had been gone.
Instead of an empty bedroom now there stood what looked like an antique sleigh bed. He glanced around the room to find the matching pieces to go with the bed. Boxes were stacked up around the room and the closet door was open with clothes stuck inside.
